USNS Mission San Fernando (T-AO-122)
Marinship
1944-1955, 1956-1957, 1964 -?
16,844 ts (light), ts 22310 (full)
181.3 m
22.9 m
48 sailors, 18 technicians
Steam turbine
14 knots
USNS T- AGM- 19 Vanguard was a telemetry - ship of the U.S. Navy.
Prehistory
The ship was commissioned during the Second World War by the United States Maritime Commission as a tanker in shipyard Marinship in order. It was laid on August 26, 1943 at Kiel and launched on November 25, 1943. Went into service on 29 February 1944 as Mission San Fernando (AO- 122).
The U.S. Navy took over the mission of San Fernando on October 21, 1947, placed them on October 1, 1949 the Military Sea Transportation Service as USNS Mission San Fernando (T- AO -122 ) until they added on May 24, 1955 out of service been. From June 21, 1956 to September 4, 1957, she was again on duty.
On September 28, 1964 it was again taken over by the U.S. Navy and rebuilt by General Dynamics in Quincy as telemetry ship. During the reconstruction, the ship received the name first in 1964 Mussel Shoals USNS (T- AGM -19), then on September 1, 1965 the name USNS Vanguard (T- AGM- 19). The re- commissioning took place on 28 February 1966.
Use as telemetry ship
The ship was equipped with instruments that served the Apollo and Skylab programs of the United States in the 1960s and 1970s. In order to ensure a permanent contact with the spacecraft in orbit, these ships met the task to close communication gaps in the land stations. After use in the Apollo program, the technical equipment for space communications by test equipment for submarine communication and tracking were replaced. On 6 August 1993, the ship was decommissioned.